Animal Description:
Skunks are mammals, usually with black-and-white fur, that are best known for their ability to excrete a strong, foul-smelling odor. Skunks also have a very long tail. Skunks are sometimes called polecats because of their visual similarity to the European polecat.
Did you Know?
All skunks are striped, even from birth. They may have a single thick stripe across back and tail, two thinner stripes, or a series of white spots and broken stripes (in the case of the spotted skunk). Some also have stripes on their legs.
Description of Animal Habitat and Animal Behaviors:
Skunks are solitary animals when not breeding. They prefer to be alone.
During the day they shelter in burrows that they dig with their powerful front claws, or in other man-made or natural hollows as the opportunity arises.
They are Crepuscular Omnivores which means they are primarily active during the twilight -- at dawn and at dusk feeding on insects and larvae, earthworms, small rodents, lizards, salamanders, frogs, snakes, birds, moles, and eggs. They also commonly eat berries, roots, leaves, grasses, fungi, and nuts. Although they have excellent senses of smell and hearing — vital attributes in a crepuscular omnivore — they have poor vision.
Skunk or Polecat (AKA Daisy)
Animal Description:
Skunks are mammals, usually with black-and-white fur, that are best known for their ability to excrete a strong, foul-smelling odor. Skunks also have a very long tail. Skunks are sometimes called polecats because of their visual similarity to the European polecat.
Did you Know?
All skunks are striped, even from birth. They may have a single thick stripe across back and tail, two thinner stripes, or a series of white spots and broken stripes (in the case of the spotted skunk). Some also have stripes on their legs.
Description of Animal Habitat and Animal Behaviors:
Skunks are solitary animals when not breeding. They prefer to be alone.
During the day they shelter in burrows that they dig with their powerful front claws, or in other man-made or natural hollows as the opportunity arises.
They are Crepuscular Omnivores which means they are primarily active during the twilight -- at dawn and at dusk feeding on insects and larvae, earthworms, small rodents, lizards, salamanders, frogs, snakes, birds, moles, and eggs. They also commonly eat berries, roots, leaves, grasses, fungi, and nuts. Although they have excellent senses of smell and hearing — vital attributes in a crepuscular omnivore — they have poor vision.